Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News is pleased to interview Mr. Pierre Teszner, President & Regional Director, Southeast Asia at Rockwell Automation regarding Rockwell’s achievements for 2018, the company’s aims for 2019, and the trends that will shape the industry in the following year.

1) Can you sum up your company’s focus and achievements in 2018?

Rockwell Automation is the world’s largest company solely devoted to industrial automation. The Connected Enterprise, which is how we implement smart manufacturing capabilities for our customers, is at the heart of everything we do. In 2018, our focus at Rockwell Automation has been to bring The Connected Enterprise to life for our customers.

With every action we took in 2018, we grew the strength of our distributors, system integrators and machine builder partners to bring the best automation and information solutions to our customers. Our partnership with PTC and the launch of our new branding towards the end of our fiscal year 2018, position Rockwell Automation tremendously well to bringing the Connected Enterprise to life for all customers and adapting it to local markets regardless of customer size, industry or geography.

2) What are your expectations on the regional economy in 2019?

The outlook for the regional economy of Southeast Asia for 2019 is positive. Factoring the risks inherent in the global trade and tariff arena, we do see a high likelihood for continued growth in the region supported by government investments (e.g. EEC Corridor in Thailand).

We also expect the FDI/ODI gaining strength into industries such as CPG (including companies involved with food production, packaged goods and beverages) and Oil & Gas. Customers are particularly investing in Southeast Asia as a regional manufacturing hub as they perceive has fewer risks and less tariff exposure.

3) What business trends in Asia capture your interest for growth next year?

Next year, we’re focused on helping our customers take the first steps to digital transformation, or continue their journey, as companies are looking at digitisation to unlock increased productivity.

Rockwell Automation has a single-minded commitment to bringing the Connected Enterprise to life for all customers Together with our partners PTC and Claroty, we’re well positioned to bridge companies’ digitisation gap through scalable solutions that suit their unique business needs – either on a CAPEX or an OPEX (infrastructure or software as-a-service), or any combination needed.

The key driver for digital transformation is the need to keep pace with the competition. Digital transformation enables organisations to optimise their existing processes and increase productivity and efficiencies within the business.

When it comes to cybersecurity, the best defence for companies is a good offence with a robust prevention and response plan to protect industrial control systems from ever-increasing cyberattacks.

5) What potential and opportunity do you see in the industry next year?

“To drive growth in the next 3-5 years, Rockwell Automation is focused on continuing to develop deep industry and country expertise and building our supplier and distributer networks. Additionally, with the region’s need for digitisation and cybersecurity we also see opportunities to help our customers to understand the world of digital transformation and the benefits that it offers.

“Through partnerships with the best universities, local governments, and Industry 4.0 agencies, Rockwell Automation is committed to elevating the industry and its needs by up-skilling students and re-skill working professionals so that the digitisation journey brings benefits to everyone.”

Industry 4.0 has transformed the way in which manufacturing is conducted and with buzzwords such as artificial intelligence (AI), analytics, cobots and cybersecurity dominating the industry. This has resulted in emerging markets such as Thailand developing innovative solutions in order to prosper. Article by Hazel Koh.

According to the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI), Thailand 4.0 is a result of the Thai government’s vision of a new economic model, aimed at pulling Thailand out of the “middle-income trap”. And through this vision, robotics and automation technology is expected to play an increasingly important role in manufacturing. This builds on Thailand’s progress in the last three decades whereby the country grew in global rankings in terms of its automotive, electronics and electrical appliance industries, which are also the main industries that drive global robotics and automation growth. Hence, as the world’s sixth-largest commercial vehicle producer, Thailand has been using robotics and automation technology at an increasing rate.

Growth In Industrial Machinery

Duangjai Asawachintachit, Secretary General of Thailand BOI, said at the end of 2017 that, “Advanced technologies are changing the business landscape, especially in the manufacturing sector.” And he further added that, “We now see many companies transitioning into Industry 4.0, making use of AI, big data management and the Internet of Things (IoT) to seamlessly work together to exponentially increase both production and productivity.”

Therefore, it can be observed that over the past few years, manufacturers in Thailand have increasingly automated manufacturing processes and adopted the use of machinery in order to remain competitive globally. In addition, 50 percent of Thai manufacturers are considering the adoption of automation systems within one to three years while medium-sized businesses will be ready in three to five years, followed by small companies in five years or more.

This has resulted in a dramatic expansion of the Thai industrial robots industry and between 2013 and 2018, Thailand’s exports of industrial robots has increased by 133 percent.

Infrastructural And Ecosystem Support

In order to facilitate the development of Thailand 4.0, Thailand has invested in numerous support networks. For example, educational institutions are playing a role in supporting research and development as well as human resource training and this can be observed in the case of the Institute of Field Robotics (FIBO) of King Mongkut’s University of Technology, Thonburi, which is currently offering undergraduate and graduate programmes in robotics and automation engineering.

To top this off, The BOI offers a consortium of tax and non-tax investment incentives for projects that meet national development objectives in automation and robotics. For example, machinery and import duty for raw materials that are meant for export production can attain up to eight years of corporate income tax exemption while for projects related to assembling robots or automation equipment and/or automation parts, investors will be exempted from corporate tax for five years. And investments relating to robotics and automation in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) will also be given another 50 percent corporate income tax reduction for an additional five years.

Future Outlook And Challenges

As Thailand builds on its vision of advance manufacturing, the workforce has to be trained in order to meet the changing industry requirements. And it has been estimated by the ILO that 56 percent of Thai-based jobs are at high risk of being automated during the next two decades. Therefore,as the government continues to focus on the development of robotics, mechanics, AI and automation, Thailand has to invest on its workforce in order to remain competitive.

Vietnam’s growth has been astronomical. In 2019, the country is set to welcome a new National Innovation Centre, IoT Innovation Hub and produce its own domestic automobiles as VinFast gears up its production plant in Haiphong. This builds upon the country’s strong PMI outlook, which can also be attributed to the rise of Vietnamese steel conglomerates such as Hoa Sen Group and Hoa Phat Group. Regarding the country’s rise, Andrew Harker, Associate Director at IHS Markit has commented that, “The recent success of Vietnamese manufacturing firms in being able to generate strong new order growth continued in December 2018. This meant that 2018 as a whole was the best calendar year for the sector since the PMI survey began in 2011 and leaves the industry well placed to have a positive 2019 despite headwinds elsewhere in the global economy.” Article by Hazel Koh.

According to Li Baodong Secretary General of the Baoao Forum for Asia, Vietnam is recognised by the world’s most prestigious organisations as the new economic tiger of Asia. This is due to the fact that the country’s economy is rapidly emerging as one of the fastest growing globally with increasing international investments. For example, just based on the number of Chinese investments that the country has attracted to date, Nguyen Duc Chung, Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee has observed that a total of 425 ​​projects in Hanoi with total registered capital of USD 517 million has been recorded.

While Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Le Hoai Trung, has attributed Vietnam’s success to its huge workforce that amounts to a population of at least 60 million working age adults and the country’s status as a dynamic, fast growing and stable economy. In fact, Vietnam’s Nikkei Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) in November 2018 reached 56.5 points which is the highest level that the country has attained in seven years, resulting in the country leading Southeast Asia in terms of its PMI ratings.

Striving Towards Self Sufficiency In Steel Production

Driven by rising steel demands and economic growth, Vietnam is looking to reduce its dependency on Chinese steel and has undertaken active steps towards this goal.This is evidenced as two of the country’s largest steelmakers look set to embark on multibillion-dollar capacity investments within the country.

In fact, Hoa Sen Group intends to spend VND 10 billion on production facilities in southern Vietnam’s Ninh Thuan province in order to capitalise on the area’s deep water ports to import raw materials and export its manufactured steel products. Although the company has yet to reveal the details of its new manufacturing facilities in Ninh Thuan, construction is scheduled to occur in 2019, with operations beginning in 2019. Hoa Sen’s new facility would possess a blast furnace, which is a tool that Vietnam still lacks, and would boost an additional capacity that would more than quadruple total outputs to 16 million tons a year in 2031.

Meanwhile, Hoa Phat Group, intends to build a VND 2.7 billion steelworks in the Dung Quat Economic Zone of Quang Ngai Province and aims to begin operations in 2020. This facility is projected to increase the company’s annual capacity to 4 million tons which would lift the group total by 130 percent. At the same time, the company will be developing a $170 million steel plate mill in Hung Yen Province, which is close to the Dung Quat facility.

Strategies To Overcome Uncertainties Induced By The Trade War

In 2018, disbursement of FDI projects in Vietnam reached a record high of USD 19.1 billion, showing the high confidence of foreign investors in Vietnam’s business and investment environments. This is an increase of 9.1 percent year-on-year amid global concerns over the tension caused by the US China Trade War. Additionally, the rapid growth of both privately and state run enterprises such as Vingroup or Viettel is an indication of Vietnam’s economy prosperity and the fact that the country’s business environment is capable of nourishing large corporations of global scale.

However, as tensions over the Trade War continue to escalate in 2019, uncertainly over the status of the global manufacturing sector has continued to plague the industry and much attention has been focused on Vietnam due to the country’s status as an emerging manufacturing hub. Currently, Vietnam is projected to capture some of China’s global market share in labour-intensive manufacturing, although, in the long-term it is uncertain if Vietnam will continue to benefit from the displacement of manufacturing from China. Thus, as the trade war drags on, experts have advised Vietnam to develop a new development strategy to evade potential risks. And Mai Vu Minh, a Germany-based investor and Chairman of SAPA Thale GmbH, has further commented that Vietnam must not merely react to changing winds but take action to innovate its way up the supply chain. He also added that this means that, “Entrepreneurs need to change to adapt new technologies, management style[s] and [strive towards] the Fourth Industrial Revolution”

Strong IPO Standings

In 2018, proceeds from Southeast Asia’s IPOs plunged 34 percent. This is the first decline in two years. However, despite the overall weakening of the region’s growth, Vietnam has emerged as the region’s fastest-growing economy and witnessed increases in its IPO presences that were significant enough to allow the country to overtake Singapore and Thailand.

In total, the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange topped the region’s exchanges in total IPO proceeds for 2018 with a value of USD2.6 billion. This is 3.7 times more than the figure for 2017. This can be attributed to the growth of local enterprises such as the Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank, which raised USD 923 million in April 2018 alone.

The emergence of Vietnam as Asia’s hot IPO destination “is a synchronized result of government support, market reform, inflow of foreign capital and high pace of economic growth,” said Margaret Yang, a Singapore-based analyst at CMC Markets.

Future Outlook

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has pledged support for the implementation of Industry 4.0 in Vietnam and this vision looks set to continue to be incorporated into the country’s national development strategies. During the opening ceremony for the Industry 4.0 Summit and Expo in 2018, Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc had also said that, “Vietnam has actively researched and transferred new technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), big data and robotics in order to improve [the country’s] competitiveness and innovation”.

Thus, as we look towards Vietnam’s future, it is expected that developments in infrastructure systems, especially ICT and digital connection infrastructures, cybersecurity, IoT and foreign collaborations will continue to dominate the country’s manufacturing sector.

LVD in collaboration with the German-Malaysian Institute, GMI, has presented the seminar “Advanced Sheet Metal Processing 4.0, Smart Technology in Action” to mark the official opening of GMI’s Sheet Metal Processing Technology Center at Jalan Ilmiah, Taman Universiti in Selangor. His Excellency Pascal Gregoire, Ambassador of Belgium to Malaysia, and YBhg Dato Dr Ir Andy Seo, GMI Board of Directors/Vice President of FMM, along with approximately 120 guests attended the event. The ceremony also included the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between GMI and LVD Company.

Regarding current industry developments, Debbaut has commented that, “Today’s manufacturing culture of small batches, short delivery times, and increasingly complex parts is making Industry 4.0 a necessity,” he further added that, “Combining orders to make more efficient use of material and improving internal logistics is a must to reduce lead times, lower stock inventories and shorten turnaround times.”

Advanced Skills Training

GMI is a hub for advanced skills training by offering high-quality technical education, training and services in response to global industry demands and trends like Industry 4.0. And its high-technology facilities promote a true industrial experience and advance its goal to develop technically-skilled graduates to support sheet metal industries.

Through a long-standing relationship with LVD, a variety of LVD sheet metal fabrication machinery were installed at GMI to provide students a hands-on sheet metalworking learning experience.

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and AMD have joined forces to launch a Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab, which will nurture next-generation tech leaders with the latest industry-driven digital skills.

The S$4 million joint Data Science and AI Lab will leverage AMD’s deep-learning technologies and NTU’s global strengths in machine learning, artificial intelligence (AI) and data science, to complement the university’s Data Science and Artificial Intelligence undergraduate programme. NTU students will be exposed to real world applications such as developing software algorithms used in security fields like identification and motion detection. They will also work on big data and analytics which are now frequently used by leading organisations. For example, students will get opportunities to develop clinical support solutions using big data analysis to aid medical diagnosis. Students will also undergo training to participate in supercomputing competitions using AMD’s versatile open source software, Radeon Open Compute (ROCm) platform. This software facilitates ultrascale or hyperscale computing, a form of high-performance computing that can simulate complex systems within just a few days where it typically used to take years.

Potential research projects and real-world machine learning and deep learning applications that students are expected to work with in the lab will leverage AMD’s open software platform for accelerated computing. For example, with the ROCm open software platform, Tensorflow (open source machine learning framework) users will benefit from graphics processing unit (GPU) acceleration and a more robust open source machine learning ecosystem. The collaboration will also provide NTU students with local and overseas attachment opportunities with AMD. From the next academic year in 2019, NTU undergraduates will be able to intern at AMD’s Shanghai Research and Development Center (SRDC) and the Singapore Product Development Center (SPDC). NTU will also support AMD’s engineers who wish to pursue PhD programmes through EDB’s Industrial Post-graduate Programme (IPP). “The philosophy behind AMD’s open source deep-learning architecture is about flexibility and choice – for developers and academics to have a range of hardware vendor-agnostic tools to innovate at scale. NTU is the premier institution for artificial intelligence, and we’re very excited to bring our technologies to empower the participating students to freely explore the diversity of deep-learning applications,” said Allen Lee, Corporate Vice President for Asia Datacenter Group, General Manager for China R&D Center, AMD. NTU’s Dean for the College of Engineering, Professor Louis Phee, said, “This collaboration with AMD highlights NTU’s drive in nurturing strong relations with top industry partners to provide students with industry-relevant education. This will not only give them first-hand insights in solving real-world challenges, but also give them an edge when navigating today’s dynamic workplace environment.”

AMD will provide one instance of AMD’s current generation of server processor (EPYC) and Radeon Instinct MI25 accelerator that can be scaled to handle hyperscale workloads to start. AMD plans to provide the university with its latest server technologies, such as the Radeon Instinct MI60 accelerators in 2019 and beyond. AMD’s AI and machine learning experts will work closely with NTU professors to conduct joint training and workshop sessions for industry members.

The collaboration will also support Singapore’s digital initiatives such as the AI.SG programme and support the nation’s transition into industry 4.0.

“The establishment of the AI and Data Science Lab between AMD and NTU today is a great example of how industry and academia can leverage transformative technologies like AI to develop real-world solutions. This partnership is testament to the company’s confidence in Singapore and the innovation cluster we have here. Such an effort will also deepen Singapore’s talent pool for AI, and provide Singaporeans with the necessary skillset to participate in the opportunities that rapid technological adoption is bringing,” said Mr. Ling Yuan Chun, Deputy Director, Semiconductors, Singapore Economic Development Board.

This is the 13th year in a row that the Vietnam Science and Technology Journalists Club has announced the list of outstanding science and technology events in 2018 and the key areas covering policy development, digital knowledge systems, entrepreneurship, international breakthroughs and pivotal investments are as shown below.

Implementation Of The Digital Vietnamese Knowledge System

On 1 January 2018, the “Digital Vietnamese knowledge system” project was launched in Hanoi with the aim of spurring knowledge exchanges, creativity and connectivity among the local community.

Through this project, comprehensive knowledge system in all fields will be developed so as to facilitate learning, enhance creative research and bolster the application of scientific and technological advances.

Ultimately, it is expected that the “Digital Vietnamese knowledge system” will provide a foundation to kickstart Vietnam’s entrepreneurial innovation movement.

Launch Of The Support Fund for Science And Technology Applications By Vingroup

On 21 August 2018, Vingroup launched the Support Fund for Science and Technology Applications. Through this fund, research projects in computer science, artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, automation, nanotechnology, renewable energy and next-generation materials will be supported through a combined investment value of approximately USD 86 million.

Development Of The A Chau Hi-tech Electrical Equipment Factory Project

On 1 November 2018, the Hoa Lac Hi-tech Park Management Board granted an investment license to A Chau Industrial Technology Joint Stock Company to build the A Chau Hi-tech Electrical Equipment Factory.

This was a pivotal moment in the field of manufacturing, integrated development, operational management, monitoring of energy system automation as Vietnam is among the first two countries to receive high technology transfers from Schneider Electric Group.

International integration: International activities on Industry 4.0 showcased in Vietnam

On 13 July 2018, the Industry 4.0 Summit occurred in Hanoi. The event attracted 2,000 delegates, including 11 ambassadors and representatives of international organisations and over 50 leading experts globally as well as domestic and international enterprises. Chaired by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, the forum strove to build policies for Vietnam to participate in the Fourth Industrial Revolution in a proactive and effective manner.

To add to this, between 11 to 13 September 2018, the World Economic Forum on ASEAN in 2018 (WEF ASEAN 2018) with the theme “ASEAN 4.0: The spirit of enterprise and the Industrial Revolution 4.0” was held in Hanoi. With an attendance that included General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuen Phu, the conference was rated as the most successful regional conference and boosted over 1,000 delegates in total.

Asia Pacific Metalworking Equipment News is pleased to speak to Cas Brentjens,Vice President Solution Consulting Asia Pacific & Japan at Infor regarding his projections on the megatrends for 2019 and the disruptive technologies that have impacted the industry in 2018.

1. Can you sum up your company’s focus and achievements in 2018?

Users now want to have an intuitive, mobile-app style user experience. That’s the first aspect of our focus – Infor builds complete industry suites in the cloud and efficiently deploys technology that puts the user experience first, leverages data science, and integrates easily into existing systems.

The second focus is to offer end-to-end digital solutions to help companies and enterprises outpace the digital disruption and unlock their growth potential. Companies are now in a competitive environment where most industries are being disrupted by new players with unique business models. We want to help companies by providing a platform where they can outpace the competition and the disruption that is happening in the industry.

2. What are the projects that companies within the industry are currently focusing on?

There has been a focus on upstream supply chain processes and we have been working on projects to help optimise large data centers through our asset management solutions. For the automotive industry, we are also looking at how to position companies in their journey towards establishing electric vehicle plants and the manufacturing of components for the new electrical vehicle market.

Companies are also investing in the factory of the future, which are optimized factories with connected IoT devices that are collecting data and doing smart things with that data. This could help in maximizing output, optimizing maintenance schedules or the customizing of products for the individual customer.

There is also one megatrend whereby companies are customizing what the consumer wants and individual industry players are working towards that trend.

3. What are your projections for the APAC economy in 2019?

Digital disruption will still happen with new players entering with new revenue models and new product offerings. Companies in most industries will be moving from a product-only business model to offering both products and services. A shift of focus in the industry from mass products to hyper-personalization will continue to happen and companies will shift from a horizontal or vertical play towards a functional play. Industries are also moving from one aspect that they are really good at from a manufacturing or services perspective, to servicing the customer from a holistic view.

4. What business trends in Asia will capture your interest for growth next year?

What is happening with the “Made in China 2025” vision is changing the way supply chains across APAC are being organised. You can see a re-design of supply chains where factories are moved out of China to Vietnam or other emerging countries. The Belt and Road initiative has not only impacting the infrastructure in China, but it is also impacting the re-design of the supply chains in other regions. Therefore, large mega-trends like the Belt and Road initiative, Industry 4.0 and “Made in China 2025” vision are making a big impact in the industry, and we are looking very closely at those.

5. To sum up, what do you think is the key industry trend in 2019?

Dealing with hyper-personalization in the market where customers are now expecting more customized products and the industry must deal with how to meet that demand and bring it to market and with speed.

Over 1,600 exhibiting companies from Canada, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, United Kingdom, USA, P.R. China, Sweden, will participate at the show which had previously attracted 34,000 trade attendees and industry leaders.

This year, an Industry 4.0 Showcase will be introduced and it will feature 9 major industry pillars including additive manufacturing, augmented reality, big data & analytics, cybersecurity, and autonomous robots.

“The essence of Manufacturing Indonesia is all about technology. The highlight is the Industry 4.0 showcase with the entire ecosystem of Industry 4.0 on display to uncover the potential of Indonesia’s smart manufacturing in the future. We strongly believe that growth is driven by technology and with it will enable manufacturers gain competitive edge through increased productivity. On this 32nd edition, we connect thousands of manufacturers together with technology and solution providers from over 28 countries and regions to support the “Making Indonesia 4.0” roadmap for a more efficient economy besides higher quality output in the industry sector,” said Maysia Stephanie, Project Director of Pamerindo Indonesia.

Indonesian Ministry of Industry has also initiated an industry 4.0 roadmap, Making Indonesia 4.0, earlier this year, which integrates industrial production and manufacturing with the new digital-based models in Indonesia. The goal of this initiative is drive the Indonesian economy into the top 10 rankings globally by 2030, which builds Indonesia’s current listing by the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) as one of the world’s top 10 manufacturing industries.

A new feature this year is the co-location of Subcon Indonesia alongside the Manufacturing Indonesia 2018 Series of Exhibitions. Indonesia’s first subcontracting exhibition is held to provide a platform on opportunities for local subcontractors to present their capabilities in supporting market and industry needs. This is an effective way to bridge the gap between the machine makers and the end manufacturers which already exist and are actively present at the event across its various featured sectors.

Karnadi Kuistono, Chairman of Asosiasi Produsen Peralatan Listrik Indonesia (APPI) has also said that, “Indonesian manufacturing and electrical companies have followed International and Indonesian Standards (SNI) where production has been adapted to comply with required order or ready stock specifications. Although some materials and components for downstream industrial products are still imported, industrial and infrastructure projects can utilize on national design and engineering. This clearly will have a positive impact for national economic growth.”

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: IDC believes that the 2019 Malaysia National Budget recently announced by Lim Guan Eng, the Finance Minister of Malaysia, was an important incremental step in achieving Malaysia’s vision to become a fully connected digital economy. The recent budget focused on the Industry 4.0 blueprint, titled “Industry4WRD”, which aims to make Malaysia the prime destination for high-tech industries in the region. The government plays a central role in the successful implementation of a robust Industry 4.0 strategy by creating clear policies and priorities to support the private sector. Initiatives like Industry4WRD focus the energy and creativity of the private sector around a common mission to create an era in which AI, robotics, 3D printing, and IoT will take centre stage and lead to digital transformation in Malaysia. IDC believes that direct support for Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) is necessary to focus Malaysia’s resources and boost the economic growth of the country.

The Malaysian government is continuing to adopt the necessary policy changes and budget priorities to strengthen the economic foundation for digital transformation and technology investments. For example, on November 7th, Malaysian Technology Development Corporation (MTDC) Sdn Bhd invited small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to embrace the fourth industrial revolution with the launch of the Centre of 9 Pillars (Co9P) initiative. This centre creates a physical location for ecosystem partners to interact for the development and incubation of solutions based on nine technology pillars including; Big Data Analytics, Autonomous Robots, Simulation & Augmented Reality, Horizontal & Vertical Integration, Internet of Things (IoT), Cybersecurity, Cloud, Additive Manufacturing and Supply Chain. IDC forecasts the size of the Big Data/Analytics investment in Malaysia will be $US670 million in 2019 led by the Banking industry while spend on IoT will be US$2.2 billion with the largest investment going into Manufacturing (2018 Big Data Spending Guide, 2018 IoT Spending Guide).

For almost a decade, IDC has been chronicling the emergence and evolution of the 3rd Platform of technology; the drive into Cloud, Mobility, Social and Big Data/Analytics technologies. The adoption of these technologies has accelerated as enterprises commit to the 3rd Platform and undergo Digital Transformation (DX) on a massive scale. Malaysia’s digital economy is in the early stages of creating an infrastructure with key core technologies (cloud, big data/analytics, artificial intelligence [AI], mobility, social business, robotics, internet of things [IoT], and 3D printing) for better public services and an economic boost. Rapid advances in cloud computing, connected devices, mobile, social media and data analytics are contributing to the growth of SMEs in Malaysia. SMEs constitute 98.5% of the total businesses and will spend US$2.7 billion on new technologies in 2019, according to IDC’s 2018 Small and Medium Business Spending Guide.

“The growth of digital economies is becoming an ever more impactful part of the global economy. The transition to a digital economy is a key driver of growth and development because it can provide a boost to the country’s productivity across all sectors and it creates an attractive environment for new investments from outside Malaysia. As the fourth industrial revolution becomes a key driver of the digital economy, entrepreneurs and SMEs need to assess fundamental aspects of their business, including what products and services they sell, how they deliver them to the market, the new skillsets required and how they need to organize to support their operations. Now is the time to take advantage of the new policies of the government and partner to accelerate new digital businesses,” said Randy Roberts, Research Director IoT and Telco, IDC Asia Pacific.

IDC strongly supports the new government’s plan to launch the National Fibre Connectivity Plan in 2019. This plan aims to develop broadband infrastructure to achieve a target of 30 Mbps speed per customer in rural and remote areas of the country within 5 years. This plan follows the implementation of the Mandatory Standard Access Pricing (MSAP) announcement from MCMC earlier this year that has successfully lowered broadband prices in order to connect more citizens to the digital economy.

“The high cost of a broadband connection in Malaysia has been one of the reasons small enterprises have delayed moving their business online. Government policies that improve the affordability, access and speed of broadband connectivity will increase the adoption of digital services and show the readiness of the economy to support digital initiatives” said Randy Roberts, Research Director IoT and Telco, IDC Asia Pacific.

IDC has documented examples of successful Public-Private Partnerships in the region, including Indonesia and Singapore, where the combination of public policy and entrepreneurship is driving the digital economy including smart city and mobile commerce services. In order to ensure the success of the digital initiatives in Malaysia, the government needs to consistently communicate the country’s digital priorities. The private sector should then follow with investment and development of resources in those areas, including development of key skillsets in the workforce to retain local talent.

According to Tran Hong Quang, director of the National Center for Socio-Economic Information and Forecast (NCIF), Vietnam has to shift towards an economic model that is more suited for Industry 4.0 due to a weakening of its current comparative advantage in natural resources and labour-intensive production. This is a view that is further reinforced by Luong Van Khoi, NCIF’s Vice Director, who said that Vietnam should focus on revising its economic model as part of the 2016 to 2020 economic reforms and aim towards improved social resources management, higher productivity and national competitiveness.

During this process, it is also essential for the country to identify sectors that have high potential and include them in the new FDI strategy. Citing a OECD research paper in which 66 million workers are projected to be replaced by machines in developing countries, Khoi further added that a number of jobs could potentially be replaced by robots such as factory work and industries such as manufacturing and processing risk being automated and will possess a lowered need for manpower.

In fact by 2025, about 42.8 million employees in Vietnam would be directly impacted by industry 4.0 and around 31 million will have to be retrained or change their jobs, Khoi continued.

Despite this, Le Huy Khoi, Head of the Industrial Policies Strategies Institute’s Study and Market Forecast Division under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, has commented that Industry 4.0 would open up more opportunities for Vietnam to grow its trade and industry sector and will encourage companies to improve their production methods, which will lead to cost reduction and improved productivity. Although, currently, awareness of industry 4.0 is still low among the business community and the technical infrastructure and technological applications have not been met. This was evidenced in a survey of 2,000 enterprises by Hanoi’s Small and Medium Enterprises Association, whereby 79 percent of the respondents indicated that they have not prepared for Industry 4.0, while another 55 percent are still attaining information regarding Industry 4.0 and 19 percent are currently working on Industry 4.0 plans. And of those surveyed, only 12 percent are executing Industry 4.0 plans.

To address those issues, Khoi has recommended that the government focus on education and work towards creating an awareness of Industry 4.0 through the dissemination of information in the political system, enterprises, business associations, research institutes and universities. Government agencies can also facilitate digital economy development, Industry 4.0 participation and application and the liberalisation of investment.